Ex-Con: Bad Boy Romance

“Yeah? What are you going to do? Call the police and tell them that I’m trying to offer you a job and you don’t want it?” She rolled her eyes. “Cry me a river...sweetheart.” She drawled the last word.

I opened my mouth, only to shut it with a snap a second later.

Straightening, I jammed my hands in my pockets as I deliberated about just how to handle her.

It came to me then. There was a beautifully simple way to end this, and all it required was the truth.

Skimming the room with a quick look, I finally settled my gaze on her. “You should probably know, I’m not exactly between projects. I fudged the truth a bit on that. I just got let go from my last job and haven’t even started looking for my next one.”

“Okay.” She smiled wider. “Sounds like this will be perfect then.”

I gritted my teeth. This woman was impossible.

“No. See, it wasn’t the boss. He liked me, appreciated my work, appreciated my willingness to work hard. But some of his clientele didn't like my background.”

I watched her closely. From the corner of my eye, I could see her two suits as well. I saw a flicker flash across Jake’s face, saw how Ryan’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly. Didn’t surprise me. I had a feeling at least one of them had already put it together.

“But in the end, he had to make a choice. It was his business, or me.”

“Why?” Carly stared at me, clearly baffled.

“Because I’m a convicted murderer.” I smiled at her, slowly. I took no pleasure from the way her face went pale, nor did it please me to see how dark her eyes suddenly seemed, but I continued on. She needed to hear this. With what was supposed to be an uncaring shrug, I said, “I’ve been out about a year. I did nine years of a fifteen-year sentence. And, yes, before you can ask, I am guilty. I killed a man. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.”

Carly continued to look at me, her eyes all wide and dark...and scared.

That bothered me. I couldn’t hide it from myself. Knowing that I’d scared her hurt me.

But I didn’t let it show.

I just stared right back and gave her a cocky grin while I was at it. It didn't mean anything, but I wanted the others to think it did. I needed them to make sure Carly was protected from herself.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Ryan and Jake exchange glances. After a few more seconds, Jake leaned closer, nodding his head toward the hotel suits, and then Ryan nodded.

Jake started toward me and I braced myself for some manhandling. I wouldn't even resist, I told myself. No matter what they did.

But Jake cut around me as if I wasn’t even there.

“Julio, perhaps one of your men could drive me to the nearest hospital? Ryan needs to stay with Carly.”

There was a low conversation that passed between them. I could have listened in, but I was too busy watching Carly. I'd wanted her scared enough to get her to understand why I couldn't be here, be near her. And I hated that I'd succeeded.

She was still staring at me. She licked her lips and it hit me. I wasn’t going to be able to follow through on that kiss. That sucked, but I knew it was for the best.

As the elevator door swung open behind us, I turned, intending to join Jake and Julio and Company.

Ryan blocked me. “What’s the hurry?” He gave me an easy smile.

“I think I’ve worn out my welcome,” I said, not bothering to hold back the edge of temper cutting into my voice. I could feel my head starting to throb. I just wanted to get home and lose myself in sleep.

“Oh, don’t worry. Jake or I will let you know when that happens.” He clapped me on the shoulder, not too subtly nudging me back from the door. “Carly, I don’t know about you, but I'm starving.”

Carly’s silence seemed to be all the answer he needed. As Ryan pulled his cell phone from his jacket pocket, he shot me a look. “You like burgers?”

I stared at him. What was he talking about?

Ryan’s smile was friendly. “It’s not a hard question, man. Beef, cow, you know?”

“Suck my dick,” I suggested. I wasn't in the mood to be jerked around.

“I’ll take that as a maybe. Preferred it dressed or plain?”

Since the man was clearly not going to be dissuaded, I just sighed. “Dressed.”

As he busied himself on the phone, I moved back to the window. The glow of the lights was one I didn’t think I’d ever tire of. It was a great view.

“Who was it?”

Carly’s question caught me off guard.

I closed my eyes. “Does it matter?”

“Somebody died. How can that not matter?”

Such a simple statement. So very true.

“He was an asshole. An abusive asshole. He beat on his girlfriend. He beat on his mother. He beat on the whores he hired. He beat on the people who were late paying him money. He beat on anybody who crossed him. He tried to beat on me once, and I kicked his ass.”

“Is...” Carly hesitated and then continued, “Is that why you killed him? Because he hurt you?”

“Nah,” I said, shaking my head. I glanced down at her. “Derrell, he wasn’t worth that. He wasn’t worth much of anything, really. Just a punk. A trouble-maker. He was a dealer. I was a...” I paused, taking my time with how I finished that statement. “I was a problem solver. I was always good with my hands. Strong. Fast. We worked for the same guy. I didn’t mess with the drugs, but if there was a problem, somebody who owed money, or somebody causing trouble, I was the one who got called. But the man in charge, one day, he told me to go after this woman. She was young. Owed him money. She had a daughter. A little girl. He said...”

I closed my eyes and leaned in until I could press my forehead to the window. I felt Carly watching me. I didn't want to tell her, but she'd asked, and if this was how I could get her to understand why I needed to go, then I'd say it.

“He told me to grab the girl. Use her if I had to. I wouldn’t do it. I grabbed the little girl from her bus stop, took her to her grandmother’s, then called the mom. Gave them money. Told them to leave town, all three of them. They did. He found out. Said he’d send his boys after them, but she had a cousin in Texas who was a Ranger. She went right to him, and my boss, he knew better than to go down that road. I said I’d take her debt, but that wasn’t good enough. He tried to send Derrell after me. Derrell, he said he’d do the job right. Do it the way I should have done it.”

My heart was racing and I could taste the acrid tang of fear in the back of my throat. My time inside might've hardened me, but this memory still gave me nightmares.

I took in a deep breath. Let it out slowly. “I had a little girl. Or I was going to. My girlfriend, she was pregnant. I got there just as Derrell was tying her up. And I killed him. Then I called an undercover cop I knew. He'd been looking for dirt on my boss for a while, tried to turn me, but I'd told him no. This time, I told him I’d give him dirt, but he had to take care of my girlfriend, the baby.”

I looked back at Carly.

Dammit. She was crying. Big, silent tears dripping down her cheeks and I flushed.

“Don’t go crying about me.” The words came out harsh and ugly.

“But–”

“Don’t!” I snapped. “I almost got my daughter killed. I don’t even know where she is now. All because I had to take the easy way out. I don’t deserve any fucking tears.”

“If you took the easy way, you would have just grabbed that little girl to begin with!” Carly threw the words at me like a challenge. Her eyes were glittering, but it wasn't all sadness now. She was angry.

Ryan cut between us before I could say anything else.

“Hey. Truce.” He lifted his hands and when his eyes moved from Carly’s to mine, there was an appraising sort of look there that made me want to squirm. “Sounds like you’ve been down a rough road there, Bobby.”

I sneered at him. “Yeah? Well, it’s my road. I can walk it just fine.”